Going Home
by haphazardhue
Summary: Alternative Ending to Twilight! Please R&R!


**Going Home**

_**Alternate Ending to Twilight**_

I buckled my seatbelt as Alice smoothly slid in next to me. Jasper had already started the engine, the low humming of the Mercedes soothing my thoughts. He didn't look back as he professionally reversed the car out of the hotel parking lot.

"Their plane will be landing in ten minutes," Alice said, breaking the silence. "It's earlier than scheduled, but the quicker Carlisle, Edward, and Emmett get here, the better."

I nodded and turned my attention towards the scenery outside the window. The familiar land of Phoenix triggered the childhood memories in my head, but the urge and _need_ to see Edward overpowered these memories. I quickly glanced at the clock on the dashboard, relieved that Edward would be by my side sooner than expected.

Jasper had turned into an outback road that still lead to the airport while avoiding the heavy city traffic. I heard the gravel crunch under the tires and the occasional bumps should have made the ride uncomfortable, but Jasper's effortless driving glided over the ground like it was sleek pavement.

I leaned back against the seat and clasped my hands together in an attempt to calm my nervous excitement. I was just beginning to relax when Jasper loudly growled.

"Get Bella out!" Jasper shouted.

He swerved the car off the road and sent it spinning into the empty grassland. My seatbelt snapped undone and quickly retracted. The door on my side was shoved open as Alice wrapped her arm around my waist. She propelled us out of the moving vehicle and the force at which she hit the ground knocked the breath out of my lungs. Alice continued moving until we were under the safe shadows of a nearby cluster of trees.

She released me and turned back to the open field, her eyes alert and searching. I began to step forward, but she raised one hand to stop me. I followed her gaze and it wasn't long before the realization hit me. I swallowed hard at the truth: James was near.

"Alice, is James here?" I weakly asked, despite my accurate prediction.

Alice was silent for a moment, her expression suddenly stern and protected. But then she sighed and nodded, unable to veil what I already knew. "Yes."

My blood ran cold as the despair sunk into my heart. The attempt to escape the vampire hunter was impossible. Suddenly, the airport seemed too far away, and my hope of seeing Edward was crushed.

The swirls of my misfortune were quickly abandoned as I saw Alice's small frame stiffen. Jasper was instantly at our side, having seen Alice's reaction from his distance. He placed his hands on her shoulders and peered into her eyes. The wordless communication that passed between them was brief. Jasper swiftly nodded and Alice was gone, gusts of wind following her as she ran. I opened my mouth to speak, but Jasper was quicker.

"Alice is going to the airport. We will have the upper hand if Victoria really decides to ambush Carlisle, Edward, and Emmett," Jasper frankly answered.

Anxiety seeped into my veins. I turned away and tried to hide the feeling, but not before a sense of calmness began to wash over me. The calmness was cut short as Jasper hissed and turned to me.

His incisive stare signaled for me to move, but my body was unresponsive to Jasper's command. He set himself in front of me and pushed me away. I tripped and tumbled to the ground, my body instinctively rolling in the direction Jasper had guided me.

An ear-splitting crash, resembling that of thunder, rang in my ear and forced me upright. James had crashed into Jasper on the precise spot I had been standing. Jasper had saved my life by pushing me away. I tried to stand up, but my legs gave out and I collapsed to my knees. This attracted James's attention and his sly smile shot a sensation of fear up my spine.

"I don't understand why you are trying to stop me," James said, more to Jasper than me. "We both equally crave the taste that pumps through her veins. Why not split the game?"

My body began to shake uncontrollably as the full meaning of James' words hit me. The offering to Jasper was of hope that he would be tempted enough to satisfy his thirst and allow James to win. Edward's explanation that Jasper was not as practiced at the Cullen's diet urged me to run for my life, but I remained where I was. I trusted Jasper, not only because he was part of Edward's family, but because his love for Alice was pure enough to motivate him to change for better. I watched as disgust coated Jasper's expression. James' eyes narrowed at Jasper's answer and anger became evident in his piercing stare.

"It's fairly reasonable that I replace what should have been mine decades ago. I had quite the attraction to your little friend and would have satisfied my hunger, if not for a certain foolish vampire. He worked at the asylum where your little friend was locked up for her visions. He stole her out, changed her, and hid her from me," James spoke, a hint of frustration in his tone. "Regardless, I disposed of the fool."

"Alice," I gasped.

Jasper heard my declaration and it registered in his mind. He growled loudly and lunged at James. Their movements were too swift for my eyes, but the piercing sound of snapping teeth and thunderous booms echoed in my ear. A shrill collision forced Jasper and James into opposite directions.

My eyes searched the ground, anxious to see that Jasper was unharmed. But to my horror, I saw that James's unconscious body was only a few feet away from me. The breath that had been caught in my throat escaped from my lips in a gasp of terror. My scent carried over to the hunter's body and he instantly arose. I could clearly see the hunger and lust as he fixed his eyes on me. My instincts were screaming at me to move, but I was paralyzed by his gaze. He sauntered forward towards me.

"NO!!" Jasper roared.

Jasper's voice lightly broke my hypnosis and I raised my hands to protect my face. I closed my eyes and waited for the pain.

A brief clash of thunder and a screech of snapping teeth deafening sounded in my ear. Ironically, unlike the previous clatters that had stirred the fear in my body, I fought to keep my grasp on the current noises, which contained a certain pitch in every hiss and growl that motivated my stamina.

Moments passed and a sense of security swept over me. The expected pain had not been delivered and I opened my eyes to satisfy my curiosity. I blinked several times as I tried to focus on the individual in front of me. He was facing away from me, his body bent in a protective posture. I shook the daze from my mind and wondered if Jasper had rescued me a second time. My eyes scanned the rest of his body and I was fully convinced that it was Jasper until I saw the playfulness of the wind in his bronze hair. Adrenaline immediately pumped through my body and I rose to my feet._ Bronze._

"Edward," I breathlessly whispered.

He whipped around and the visible unease in his eyes instantly melted. I stumbled forward and tangled myself in his embrace, my eyes full with tears, the correct words lost with my voice. The strength of his arms as he wrapped them around me kept my heart together. He pressed his lips into my hair and inhaled my scent.

"What happened to James?" I asked, even though I felt bearably safe in his arms.

"Emmett and Jasper have him. You're safe now, Bella."

I nodded. "I know."

Edward sighed and held me tighter in his arms. "Bella, I'm so sorry. If only I had been faster, you would not be in this situation."

I shook my head and pulled away to look into his eyes. "Don't apologize. I would rather suffer through eternal pain than not be able to see you."

A smile crossed his lips and he kissed me gently, the touch that I had longed for since the day of our parting. He abruptly pulled away and examined me closely.

"Did he hurt you?" Edward sternly questioned.

I shook my head again, unable to say any words. I wanted to cherish the moment, to stand under the shade of the trees, with the thought that if the tiniest branch was to sway at any moment, a gleam of sunlight would pour in and emphasize Edward's beauty even more.

The ring of a cell phone made me jump. Edward laughed in amusement as Alice stepped forward and handed me her silver phone.

"Your mom," Alice mouthed.

I remembered my vague message on her answering machine that advised her not to return home. I raised the phone to my ear. "Mom?"

"Bella? Oh, thank goodness you're okay!" My mom exclaimed. "I received your message and your father has already told me what happened."

"Mom, there's something we need to talk about."

"That's right. Phil is booking a flight to Phoenix as we talk, Bella. I'm coming to get you and you can come live with us in Jacksonville."

"Mom," I sighed. "I'm not coming back to Jacksonville."

I looked up at Edward, who raised an eyebrow at my response.

"You're not coming to Jacksonville?" She sadly responded. "But I thought you hated Forks, Bella. That's why you left in the first place, right?"

"I _thought_ I hated Forks, Mom. I have great friends in Forks and I really do miss it there."

The other end was silent for a moment. Then, she sighed.

"Is this because of a boy, Bella?" My mother asked.

This time it was my turn to be silent as I gawked at her answer.

"Your father told me," she confessed. "I figured that you were trying to get away."

"You're right, Mom," I admitted. "But I really want to go back to Forks. I miss it there."

My mother sighed again. "Alright, Bella. But promise to come and visit me?"

"I promise, Mom."

"And will you bring that boy? I've yet to meet him, you know."

I smiled. "I promise. Good-bye, Mom."

I shut the phone and looked up only to be locked into Edward's eyes. He rested his hands on my shoulders, the slightest shift of the wind tangling in his hair.

"You're not going home?" He eagerly asked.

"Of course I'm going home," I frankly answered.

He blinked and studied me carefully. "Then, is your mother coming to get you?"

I shook my head and confusion crossed his face. "But you said that you were going home."

I reached up on my toes and kissed him, locking my wrists behind his neck. I pulled away as the oxygen drained from my lungs.

"I'm going home with you," I replied.

Edward smiled, the beauty of his expression squeezing my heart. His stroked my cheek with his thumb as his free hand wound itself around my waist.

"I love you, Bella," he simply answered.

At that moment, the wind blew through again, ruffling the branches of the grand trees. The movement stirred a branch and sunlight streamed in through the open space. The light hit the side of Edward's face and bounced off into glitter-like rays. I raised my hand and caressed his sunlit cheek.

"I know. I love you too, Edward."

Edward leaned down and pressed his lips against mine.


End file.
